


Season

by Symone_Nicole



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe, Established Relationship, Fantasy-AU, M/M, Magic-AU, Witches-AU, witches and demons oh my
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:01:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26826283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Symone_Nicole/pseuds/Symone_Nicole
Summary: [insert summary here]
Relationships: Finn/Kylo Ren
Comments: 6
Kudos: 18





	1. Part One

Deep in the forest, there is a small town. It is surrounded by endless trees, a lake that the locals know, and a river that runs along the dirt road. The dirt road stretches across the entrance of the small town, one can ride it for a week straight before they hit the next town. 

Today, in the small town, the sun was finally out. It shines its warmth down onto people’s skin. Weeks ago the people of the small town had been confined to their homes. A gentle and calm breeze blew through the trees and grass. Nature was playing its own tune and underneath he could hear the voices of the people. Kylo took a deep breath, inhaling the familiar smell of nature around him. His curved nose pulls up when he recognizes the scent of smoke and burnt flesh.

He didn’t linger outside the town, he urged his horse forward, straight into town. The people notice the newcomer right away. They hardly got travelers, and they hadn’t especially in the past few weeks. They immediately took note of his arrangement of bows and furs that were on his steed. On the back of his horse there was a large elk that he had recently killed on his way to the town. Word spread that there was a hunter in town and the butcher didn’t hesitate to purchase his latest kill.

“Praises to the Creator that you showed up when you did, hunter.” The butcher stated as Kylo unloaded the elk from the back of his horse.

“Running low on meat?” Kylo asked, “hard to imagine that with your village in a good hunting area.”

“Aye, a few weeks back we had a plague.” The butcher answered while leading Kylo into his shop. “No one dared to stop here, let alone ride near here.”

“No offense, but it hardly looks like this town has seen a plague--let alone so recently.”

The butcher laughs. “None taken, friend. We recently solved our problems--it was a witch.”

“A real witch?” Kylo asked, his brow raised.

The butcher nodded, “aye. A male one if you’d believe it. A witch-hunter general came and did the Creator’s holy work. We burned him at the stake yesterday! His body is still in the main square if you’d want a look.”

Kylo’s jaw went tight as he bit at his cheek. His hands were clenched into tight fists as he crossed his arms. The butcher was too busy analyzing Kylo’s latest skill to notice his behavior.

“Might have to, never seen a real witch before,” Kylo responded, his voice dead.

Kylo and the butcher walked out of the shop together and were instantly greeted by the mayor and the witch hunters. 

“So, this must be the hunter everyone has been talking about,” the mayor greeted. “Already buying up all of his wares, Mr.Butch?”

“I’d figured some fresh meat would be great for tonight's celebrations, Mr. Ayor.”

“A celebration?” Kylo asked. “I’ve been tracking a pack that led me this direction--I could hunt more game for you.”

“The Creator has truly blessed us with you hunter,” the mayor smiled.

“I don’t think we caught your name hunter,” the witch-hunter general spoke. He was dressed in fine robes with the witch-hunter symbol on his right arm.

“Benjamin Organa,” Kylo nodded respectfully. The witch-hunter general eyes widened upon recognition of his family name, the two witch-hunters behind him gasped.

“By chance, are you a descendent of witch-hunter general Anakin? I thought all of the Organas died in the Great Tragedy.”

Kylo nods, “Not all of us--he was my grandfather.”

“You never thought to carry on his legacy… to be a witch-hunter yourself?”

“No. Not when all of the witches were known to have died in the Great Tragedy,” Kylo answered. 

“Not all,” the witch-hunter general responded. “I’ve made it my life mission to seek out and kill all witches to finish your grandfather’s work. There’s so many questions I wish to ask you.” The witch general took a step forward as he leaned in closer to Kylo.

Kylo takes a step back, keeping respectable space between them. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”

“My apologies! It’s Parrish, James Parrish.”

“Mr.Parrish, I can answer all of your questions after I settle in,” Kylo stated as he moved closer to his horse.

“I’m afraid there’s no rooms at the inn,” Mr. Ayor spoke up. “The witch-hunters have the three rooms and the fourth was occupied by the witch.”

“I see, no worries. I’m no stranger to sleeping in a tent.”

“There’s a small cottage near the edge of the forest,” Mr. Butch stated. “No one lives there right now--it might be a bit dusty but it’s better than sleeping on the ground.”

Kylo grabs the reins of his horse, “I’ll take you up on that kind offer. Now, gentlemen, if you’ll excuse me.”

Kylo made his way to the town center where he stopped by stands that would be interested in his wares for coins. His gaze kept glancing towards the middle of the square where he could see the large burnt stake surrounded by ashes and smoldered wood. He did his best to keep his emotions in check as he looked at the burned, crisped body that was bound to the stake. He tried not to think about it as he dined in the inn. 

The inn was the only place to dine in the town. Unfortunately, the witch hunters were there when Kylo showed up to grab a hot meal. He sat down at a table far from the other patrons. He sat with his back towards them, an attempt to stop any opportunity of small talk. Mr. Parrish was not the intelligent sort when it came to body language. He gathered his two apprentices and made way to join Kylo at his table. Much to his displeasure, Mr.Parrish asked about his lineage. Kylo answered his question while keeping his voice reserved and void of his raw emotions.

After escaping from Mr. Parrish’s questions, Kylo mounted his horse and found the small cottage that was near the edge of the forest. He jumped down to the ground as he quickly gathered his things and made his way inside his temporary accommodations. He closed the door behind him and he couldn’t maintain his facade anymore. The tight grip his fingers held on to the strap of his pack began to loosen. The strap slides off the tip of his fingers and the pack hits the ground when a deafening scream leaves Kylo’s lips. His voice chokes as his back slump forwards, his eyes are stinging red from anger and grief. He falls back and hits against the door before he slides down onto the floor as tears streaked down his face. He mourned the loss of his beloved--the witch who was burned at the stake.

“Finn!” he howled, his voice broken and unsteady. “I’ll fix this. I’ll fix this,” he repeated as his hand clutched over his heart. Making a promise, an unwavering promise. A promise such that no lengths are too long and no obstacles could possibly stand in his way. He has made many promises to his beloved, and he has kept them all.

His soul was crying out from the painful loss but also for vengeance.

Kylo returned to the village after hunting more games for meats and pelts. The townspeople were grateful that there was a hunter in the vicinity. Their moods were lifted since they were rid of the plague and there was fresh meat again. When he was going to return to his lodgings, the witch-hunter general spotted him.

“Mr. Organa!” Mr.Parrish greeted as he moved quickly towards Kylo with a smile on his face.

“Mr. Parrish, what can I do for you?” Kylo kept his voice leveled and clear.

“I have questions about witches I couldn’t ask earlier in front of my men.” Mr. Parrish started before he cleared his throat. “I’m asking about the disposal of witches after they’ve been dealt with and their earthly possessions.”

“You don’t know?”

“I admit that this witch was my first witch,” Mr.Parrish answered bashfully. “I was a child when I came across my grandfather’s journal, that’s the reason why I became a witch-hunter at first.”

“If you have no prior experience, how did you know he was a witch?”

“He had the witch’s mark,” Mr.Parrish answered. “The claw mark on his back--I also conducted the ordeal by water and the bleeding test. He failed all of them.”

“You’ve done your studies, Mr.Parrish.”

“Indeed I have, hunter. What I am unclear of is the disposal of witches. I could hardly find any information about it and my grandfather only mentioned a ritual but no further details.”

“I see,” Kylo responded. “What was your grandfather’s rank?”

“He was an initiate,” Mr. Parrish spoke low and quietly.

“That’s why he didn’t mention details of the ritual. My grandfather was blessed with a few others to handle a deceased witch and their possessions. Before he died, he conducted the blessing on me so when I was older I could be protected.”

“Can you teach me?”

“It would be pointless--without the blessing, you risk possibly falling to a witch's last curse.”

“Then can you perform the blessing?”

“I couldn’t, even if I wanted too.” Kylo answered, “the blessing required special instruments that were destroyed in the Great Tragedy.”

“Blasted! It seems evil is once again trying to keep me from doing the Creator’s work!”

“There is a way around it,” Kylo started.

“Is it dangerous?”

Kylo shakes his head, “my grandfather said that a witch's last curse only befalls to those who are present at the time. If you keep one of your witch-hunters from making contact with a witch then they can dispose of the witch and its possessions.”

Mr. Parrish looked down in deep thought. “I was truly blessed by the Creator to have met you today, Mr. Organa. I’ll remember that for my next encounter with a witch, I just don’t know what I could possibly do now.”

“I could take care of it for you,” Kylo suggested.

“You could?”

“I’m not a witch-hunter but my grandfather’s knowledge is in here,” Kylo stated as he taped the side of his head. “Also, I’m safe from the last curse.”

“By the Creator, bless your kind soul,” Mr.Parrish responded. 

“I’ll make all the preparations,” Kylo stated as he climbed on top of his horse.

“Will you not be staying for the feast tonight?”

“I am afraid I’ll need to get some rest tonight, especially to dispose of that witch soon.”

“Ah of course and the road is very long from the town to the next settlement.”

“Enjoy yourself tonight, Mr. Parrish,” Kylo gave his farewell before he started trotting away from town and towards his lodging.

Kylo returned back to the small cottage, but not just for the purpose of preparing for tomorrow. He needed to rest for what he planned for tonight. When Kylo exited the small cottage, the moon was high and full and the stars pathed the way. He could hear the loud cheering and music from the small town as they danced and drank to the death of the witch, and to the end of their plague. Kylo shrugged his pack over his shoulders as he walked past his horse and down the dirt road.

Others might have complained about the walk, but Kylo was accustomed to physical pain. He walked for a long time without any complaint until he found it. Almost an hour away from the town, Kylo came across a crossroads. The tall destination signed names were withered from time and the elements. He headed towards the crossroads, his back straight and tall as he lengthened his stride. 

Kylo stood in the middle of the crossroads as he pulled a small knife from the back of his belt. He unsheathed the knife and glanced up at the moon, he mumbled against his lips faintly and quietly. He slashed his hand with the knife quickly, not wincing at the pain as he kept mumbling. He held his hand out, keeping his palm open allowing his blood to drip into the soil.

“I summon you,” Kylo stated, his voice stern as his blood mixed in with the earth. 

Kylo took a step back before a bright red light swirled in front of him. What seemed to be a light, wasn’t a light at all. It was a red liquid, as red and as thick as blood with clumps of dirt. The dirt and blood collided together until there was a tall man standing before Kylo. Except, the man in front of Kylo was very far from human. It was a demon made with blood and dirt, who stood tall as he looked down at Kylo. Kylo was a remarkably tall man himself, the last time he felt small was before he hit puberty. However, despite the demon trumping in height, Kylo stood his ground as he extended his chest.

The demon sniffs before it grins. It speaks, its voice slightly disembodied. “A blood mage,” his lips curled, “to what pleasure do I owe being summoned by you?”

“Vengeance.”

The demon smirks, “it's always vengeance or greed. But I’m sure a blood mage can achieve vengeance without a demon’s help.”

Kylo's eyes looked over the demon's form, an unnatural one even for a demon. “There’s a small town, barely an hour walk from here to the east. My lover was there--”

“And she cheated on you?” The demon interrupted.

Kylo’s jaw clenched as his hands curled into tight fists. He took a deep breath and his nose flared, “ _ he  _ was murdered. He wanted to travel and see the lands. He was a healer, he can not resist helping others in need. That small-town encountered a plague.” Kylo started to pace, “I begged him not to stay, to let death collect. He wouldn’t listen. Only to be caught by some half-wit, conniving, wanna-be witch hunter. He helped those people, only to be burned by the stake because of some trick tests. Only because the mark on his back was my fault.”

Kylo stopped as he looked up at the night sky. “What would you have me do?”

“I need you to bring him back.”

The demon laughed, “surely you know not what you are asking me for.”

Kylo turned around to face the demon in a fury. “I know exactly what I’m commanding you to do.”

There was a click sound before the demon took a step forward, leaning down to be eye-leveled. “I assure you, that you could not pay the price.”

“You don’t know me, demon.”

“A soul for a soul, that’s the price,” the demon responded immediately.

Kylo scoffed, “just one?” Kylo leaned closer, his voice low and steady. “I’m going to kill every single man, woman, child, and beast in that town. All those wretched and pure souls will be yours. And you will bring Finn back alive, soul attached, memories of that cursed town forgotten. Do we have an agreement?” 

The demon leaned back with the laughter, “Oh, we most certainly do.” Their hands collided and magic swirled between them. The mark of their spoken pack under Kylo’s wrist. 

Kylo prepared to head back to the cottage and he turned around to see the demon still there. “Do you need something, demon?”

“I just want to know your name, blood mage.”

“Call me, Kylo,” he answered. “Three days, make sure you're ready to hold up the end of your bargain, demon.”


	2. Part Two

He stands in the middle of tall trees that are slowly becoming bare. Leaves fall around him as he is beyond the reaches from home. Far from eyes filled with worry and fear, and yet in the forest there is a pair of eyes watching him carefully. His eyes stare down into the pages of his book, his grimoire, and without lifting his eyes from the pages he speaks.

“You shouldn’t be here,” he responds as he flips the page.

A boy, younger than him by three years, steps out from their cover with a pout. The boy, who recently just turned 13 crossed his arms, “you shouldn’t be out here either.”

He closes his grimoire as he looks up at the brown-skinned boy. The boy smiled brightly when their eyes met. He sighed, “Finn.”

“Ben,” Finn interrupted. “You shouldn’t be doing this alone.”

“You could get hurt.”

“Healer,” Finn responded as he went to take his usual seat on a nearby stump. “We’ve been coming out here for months, and no one has gotten hurt.”

  
  


Ben gave up easily. Finn was the reason his parents hadn’t figured out that he had come out to the woods to practice. After each practice session, Finn always healed him. Ben didn’t care if his parents found out, he just didn’t want anyone to get injured. He was doing this to prove that his powers shouldn’t be feared. His arcane could well get him banished if his mother wasn’t the coven’s supreme. He wanted to disprove the superstitions on blood mages. Ben believed that with practice and mastery, his powers wouldn’t harm anyone unintended. If Finn were to get injured in his unsupervised studies, it would only make his situation worse.

“So, which spell are you practicing today?”

“It’s new, it was written last night,” Ben answered as he crafted a quick levitation spell. His grimoire floated beside him as he reached for a small, sharp knife. Ben brings the blade to the palm of his hand, he digs into the flesh with barely a flinch at the pain. His blood drips out ready for his command, Finn watches it oozes resisting the urge to heal.

Ben loudly and clearly chants the spell. They are far enough from their coven that he could afford to be loud without being discovered. He could feel the magic weaving within his blood, taking shape. They both watched as his blood lifted from his hand, growing and twirling. When the spell was cast, the blood was dancing in the area as it circled around Ben. It made no sound and moved with Ben’s movements, its position fixed to him.

Finn moved off the stump and walked closer to Ben, his eyes tracking its movements. “Is it a familiar?”

“I think so?” Ben responded, his voice uncertain as he flipped between two pages. “I could just make out the words ‘unbreakable bond’. Ben looked up from his grimoire to see Finn’s clear concern.

“What? I told you that you shouldn’t be here.”

“I wasn’t going to say anything,” Finn paused as he watched it intently. “It’s kinda cute though.”

“My blood?”

“Your magic,” Finn responded without thought. He could feel his face getting warm but decided to look at it, whatever it was, instead.

“It's dangerous,” Kylo responded.

“So is nightbane, dragon’s breath, and luxtail, but people still find them to be beautiful,” Finn responded.

For a brief moment, the two stared at each other. Finn was the first to look away, unable to withstand Ben’s intense gaze. He noticed the changes in it right away, “uh is it supposed to be doing that?”

Ben shook from his thoughts and noticed it, it was growing thicker and moving faster at an alarming rate. “Get outta here!” Ben warned before he tried to dispel his magic.

Finn moved to get out of the way, but it followed him. Finn moved with haste, only to trip on a branch that was covered by leaves and Ben was too late. The spell he had cast struck Finn right on his back, Ben felt his blood run cold as he heard Finn’s scream at the pain. Ben flipped through his grimoire for a solution. Before he could locate a remedy to help, his spell had lashed at his palm. Unimaginable pain courses through his body, him and Finn screamed in unison as the spell brought their bodies physically closer. The pain didn’t end until after Ben’s hand made contact with Finn’s back.

Their breathing was heavy, Ben lifted his hand and noticed a small mark that was flesh tone. The cut he inflicted on his palm had been healed but now the mystery mark had taken its place. He quickly moved his attention to Finn.

“Finn! Are you alright,” Ben asked, his hands hovering over him, too afraid to touch and cause more harm.

“Pretty flowers,” Finn answered.

“What?”

“Those are pretty flowers,” a small voice answered. It wasn’t anything like Finn’s, especially Finn’s voice when he was 13.

Kylo blinked as he looked down at the little girl, smiling up at him. Three of her front teeth were missing, but it didn’t stop her from smiling as big as the sun. She had big brown eyes and soft red hair that was braided over her shoulder. She couldn’t have been more than ten years old. Kylo looked down at his hands, he had been collecting flowers. 

The flowers were without a doubt pretty, they were bright soft colors that stood against the sea of green of the forest. Non-mages didn’t know that his flowers were great for the spirit. They were perfect for keeping the spirit attached to a corpse. The irony was that the church used them for troubled souls so that they would find peace.

“Were you daydreamin’?” the little girl asked. “I daydream a lot too. Momma is always on to me because I’m daydreamin’. I like daydreamin’. It’s fun and it don’t hurt nobody.”

Kylo hums thoughtfully as he stands up flowers in hand. “In a way.”

“Then why do you look so sad? Daydreamin’ is happy, ain’t it.” The little girl slightly pouted.

“I was remembering a friend, I did something foolish and he got hurt,” Kylo answered as he bundled the flowers together with twine. 

“Is he okay?”

Kylo nods, “he will be.” He said as he added the bundle with many more in his sack. He turned towards the little girl, lowering himself to her height. “But what are you doing out here all alone?”

The little girl twiddles her thumbs as she thought carefully of her answer. “I, I, uh, I came to water ‘em.” The girl answered as she looked towards the right.

Kylo knew what they were immediately. It was a patch of flowers that Finn favored for their looks and for their healing abilities. They were great for all kinds of simple ailments and easy to use. Finn would smash them and add them with berry juice and kids loved it.

“He planted ‘em, he came here every day to water ‘em. And I joined him,” the little girl added.

“Who?” Kylo asked, though he perfectly knew the gardener.

“His name was Finn, the witch,” the little girl responded. “At least, all the grown-ups said he was a witch. But Finn was kind, ya know? Very kind. I had the plague, ya know? Way before Finn came and he healed me. Finn made all of us better. Witches are supposed to be ugly, face covered in warts. They're supposed to be mean and do all kinds of evil things. They even are supposed to hate children, add them in their stews. But Finn wasn’t anything like that.” The little girl paused, “he was very kind to me and all the other kids. He told us fun stories, he played with us, and he helped us. And he was pretty, very pretty. Don’t sound like a witch at all. The grown-ups said he ought to be because Mr.Parrish said so. Grown-ups always tellin’ us to listen but they don’t listen to us. He was so kind to us, but they were so mean to him.”

Kylo watched as the little girl’s eyes downcast, “I miss ‘em.”

“What’s your name?” Kylo asked.

“Millicent, what’s yours?” 

“Ben,” Kylo answered. He stood up and held out his hand for Millicent to grab. “Let’s get you back to town before your mother starts to worry.”

Millicent hums in response as she follows Kylo to his horse. Once Kylo is on his steed, he picks up the girl and places her before him. “Hold on tight,” Kylo stated before he urged his horse forward quickly. There were many things he had to do today. He only had two days after all to hold his end of the bargain.

When they made it back to town, Kylo dropped off Millicent outside her humble house. He briefly chatted with her mother, letting her know he found her on the outskirts of the woods. After the brief chat, he went straight to the carpenter, to purchase a simple wooden wagon. One that would be easy for his horse to carry. After purchasing a wagon from the carpenter, his next stop was to visit the town’s local undertaker. There his next purchase was a simple, plain wooden casket. One that wouldn’t raise any suspicions, it was just for the witch after all. His next stop wasn’t far away, it was the town center where the burnt corpse was still out for display.

Kylo brings his horse to halt before he hops down. He grabs a pair of gloves from his pocket and slides them on his hands. They were a fine pair of gloves, the best gloves coin could buy. Gloves that thieves would steal for because of their light touch. He pulls a glove over his left hand and stops when he looks at his markless palm. The mark that had been there since he was 15 was gone. It had vanished the exact moment Finn perished.

Kylo steps up on the pyre gently. He takes out his knife and carefully cuts the remains of rope that had the corpse's hands tied. He was moved cautiously with each touch as he gently moved the charred corpse from its display to its casket. He kept his real emotions buried as he let his mind wander.

Ben sat in his room, his head buried in his hands before his bedroom door was suddenly opened. His parents entered his room, his mother rushed inside pacing and his father was cautious and unsure and stayed standing by the door. Ben didn’t look up, and he already knew what his mother was going to say.

His mother huffs, air expelled hard from her nose. “Benjamin Solo, what were you thinking?!”

“I-”

“You weren’t thinking at all, that’s clear to me!” Leia ranted as she paced. “I do my best to protect you, to ensure your safety and what do you do? You deliberately disobeyed me. I know you think I’m hard on you but there’s a reason why. Your powers are unknown, anyone can easily get hurt and now Finn is hurt.”

“I told him that he shouldn’t have been there!” Ben stated as he looked up at his mother with his eyes tinted red. “I always told him that he shouldn’t have been there but he chose to stay! I don’t know what happened, everything was going fine until it latched to us.” Kylo wiped his face with his hands, “I didn’t want to harm him.”

Leia sighed as she knelt in front of her son, “that’s why blood mages are so dangerous. You’re a danger to yourself and to others, even when it’s not your intention.”

“It’s only dangerous because it's misunderstood! When was the last time there a mage like me, mom? You preach that we live separately from the non-mages because we are unknown. You say they fear the unknown. My powers are feared because no one knows anything about it. But if you let me study, if you let me gain mastery over my powers then there wouldn’t be any more fear.”

“No, absolutely not!” Leia argued, “we’ve talked about this, and you know exactly why you can’t. If today didn't teach you, what will? How far will you go until you see that your powers are a danger?”

“Is that how you see me?” Ben asked his voice low.

“Ben,” Leia sighed, “you're my own flesh and blood. I see good in you but the council… the council wants to make you a null.”

“Death would be better,” Ben responded.

“Benjamin!”

“It’s the truth! Everyone knows death would be better than that!”

“I’m confiscating your grimoire, you’re lucky Finn is still alive.” Leia stated, “the mark on his back won’t go away.”

“I know,” Ben stated as he opened his left hand.

“What did you do to him?”

“I’m not sure,” Ben answered to his parents' displeasure. “But he’s going to be okay, I just know it.”

Leia noticed her son staring at the palm of his hand. She grabbed and stared at the mark on his palm. When her fingers went to touch it, Ben retracted his hand. He didn’t know why but he didn’t want anyone else to touch it.

“What--”

“I don’t know, okay! But we’re going to be okay, I don’t know how I know that. But we are going to be just fine.” Ben stayed as he closed his palm. “If you let me study then I would have known exactly what I was casting.”

“If you just listened to me then we wouldn’t be having this conversation,” Leia stated. “Your grimoire, Ben.”

Ben huffed as he brought out his grimoire. It appeared on his bed and his mother gently took it, casting a spell on it. “In the meantime, I’ll be keeping this. Hopefully, it will appease the council.”

With that Leia left the room, Han looked at his son as he turned his back towards him.

“Your mother and I are just worried about you two, we just want to keep you safe.”

“More like your reputations,” Ben stated under his breath. “That’s what it's really about. Can’t have the supreme having a blood mage as a son.”

“Ben… It’s nothing like that, you know that. We just don’t want to bury in flowers.”

“What?” Ben asked as he looked over his shoulder. Instead of meeting the eyes of his father, he saw the eyes of Mr.Parrish instead. He kept his emotions in check to not show his intense hatred and disdain for this man.

Mr.Parrish was staring into the wooden coffin, looking at the burnt corpse that was laid carefully. He wasn’t watching when Kylo moved the corpse gently and cautiously. The corpse was laid on top of the flowers Kylo had picked early in the morning. Kylo was standing by the coffin, spreading the flowers on top of the corpse, covering it completely with petals.

“You’re burying the witch? In flowers?” Mr.Parrish asked, his brows pressed with confusion.

“You know the Creator’s word do you not?” Kylo asked as he continued with his task. “The dead shall be mourned with their last rites whether man, woman, or child. The last rites will guide them to me to their everlasting peace. Even those with wretched souls shall find peace when they are buried with my light.” Kylo finished quoting the Creator’s word. The flowers he gathered were called the Creator’s Light, they bloomed just in the dawn, and those were the times that needed to be picked for the last rite.

“Even for witches?” Mr.Parrish asked while he rubbed his chin.

“Whose soul is more wretched than a witch?” Kylo responded. “That’s what my grandfather said to me.”

“My grandfather often wrote in his journal about witch-hunter general Anakin’s wisdom,” Mr.Parrish responded.

“You want to move their bodies carefully, making sure their dust doesn’t linger,” Kylo instructed. “If dust from their bodies remains, anyone who contacts them would be in danger of their last curse. Then you want to bury the body far from any towns for preventative measures.”

“And that’s all?”

“You just have to read them their last rites, then you're done,” Kylo stated as he covered the corpse's face with flowers. He slid the top of the coffin on and with the help of Mr.Parrish’s men they lifted it onto the wagon, sliding it carefully.

“I have learned more from you than I have on my own,” Mr.Parrish admitted. “It’s hard finding your grandfather’s work that isn’t completely damaged.”

Kylo simply nods in acknowledgment, “if you’ll excuse me, Mr.Parrish. I have to take it back to the cabin before I start to clear out the witch’s possession in its old room at the inn.”

“Is that protocol?”

“A safety precaution from curious, idle hands,” Kylo responded.

“Ah, I see,” Mr.Parrish nodded understandingly. “As you were, Mr. Organa.”

Kylo nodded as he mounted his horse, he urged his horse forward and in his mind, he cursed Mr.Parrish the most painful death. His mind wandered back to Finn as it always had. Usually, the thoughts were just about Finn’s needs and safety. But today, more than any other, he had been reminiscing their youth.

Ben felt in many ways that his mother had grounded him when she took his grimoire. She never forbade him from leaving their home, but Ben never stepped a foot outside. In fact, he hardly stepped a foot outside his room. He didn’t want to have to deal with people’s disappointing gazes, their low whispers, or their blatant disgust for him. Their coven had their own town, decent in size, and they loved to gossip. Ben was sure that the whole town knew about the incident. They knew he had been practicing his arcane, an ultimate crime in their eyes. He was sure of it that they knew his grimoire had been confiscated. Ben could ignore everyone else, but he didn’t want to face Finn. He didn’t want to see his friend looking at him in fear.

Ben knew that Finn was okay, that he was out of the healing house. His father gave him daily updates, often creaking open his door to notify him of Finn’s well-being, and to check up on his son. When Finn left the healing house, the first place he visited was the Organa house. However, Ben refused to see him. Finn had been coming by daily, and Han had been covering for his son daily. Eventually, Han started telling Finn obvious lies about why his son wasn’t home. Activities they both knew that Ben would never do in any lifetime. Ben could hear it all, his father spoke loud enough for him to hear in hope that Ben would rush out of his room. He never did.

It’s early in the morning when Ben’s bedroom door is open. Ben just lies in bed, ignoring whoever chosen to enter his room. He can hear the footsteps step across his room, heading straight for the window and opening his bedroom curtains wide open. Ben groans as the bright light sting his eyes. He groans as he quickly covers his face with his blanket.

“Go away!” Ben stated as he started to turn away from the light.

“So, this is all it takes for you to talk to me?” A familiar voice asked. “Just a morning wake-up call.”

Ben's eyes widened as he laid under his blanket. “What is Finn doing here?” Ben thought.

Finn crossed his arms, “well, I always try to come and visit you. You’re always out, but you’ve just been ignoring me.” Finn pouted as he looked down at his shoes. Even now Ben wouldn’t even look at him.

Ben's brows creased before he threw back his blanket and looked at Finn in confusion.

“What? I have been coming to see you or have you really been praising the Creator all day and night?”

“Heavens no,” Ben scoffed. Ben bites his lip as he turns his head to look at a wall. “I just thought you didn’t want to see me,” Ben thought.

“Why wouldn’t I want to see you?” Finn asked, “you’re my friend, Ben. It was just an accident, if you think accidents don’t happen in class you’re wrong.”

Ben turned back to look at Finn, “I didn’t say that aloud.”

Finn blinked as he looked at him, “what are you talking about?”

Ben looked at Finn intently, “I didn’t even speak,” Ben thought and Finn's eyes widened in realization.

“I can hear you!” Finn stated as his eyes bulged. He blinked repeatedly before he spoke, “how?”

Ben shrugged, “could have been the spell? I didn’t really understand all of it.”

“Okay but why now?”

“Maybe because of distance,” Ben answered.

“Wait, just wait,” Finn asked as he slowly paced Ben’s room. “Can you hear me?” Finn thought.

“Yeah, I hear you,” Ben responded. “This is weird, this doesn’t make any sense. If only I had my grimoire, we could understand what I did.”

Finn plopped down on the bed, sitting next to Ben. “we will get them back before you know it.”

“We?”

Finn nodded, “I told the council that it was my idea. That I had been encouraging you for months to practice, and it was reasonable that we both had the same punishment.”

“Why would you do that?” Ben asked.

“Because I know if things were different you would do the same for me,” Finn responded with a smile. Finn’s smile soon turned to laughter, “actually... you would steal my grimoire back for me.”

“Damn right,” Ben said with a slight smile. “But until we get some answers, we're going to have to figure this out on our own. So far we’ve got our marks and our newly developed telepathic abilities.”

“Our marks?” Finn asked.

Ben answered by holding out the palm of his hand. Finn eyed the mark before he slowly reached out to gently touch the raised flesh. “Does it hurt?” Finn asked, his voice quiet.

“No, does yours?” Ben asked and Finn shook his head. Finn didn’t need to hear Ben’s thoughts to know he regretted the incident. 

Finn leaned his head on Ben’s shoulder and grabbed Ben’s hand. “I’m fine, okay? We’ll figure this out.”

Ben squeezed his hand back. 

Kylo sighed as he returned back to his temporary accommodations. He had just gotten back from clearing out Finn’s belongings from the Inn. Of course, James Parrish was in attendance asking even more questions. Mr. Parrish was lucky that his men were near or Kylo would have easily disposed of the witch-hunter general. However, Kylo had some form of patience, especially when his goal was so near.

Kylo was tired, mentally. It was exhausting to keep up such a rouse of indifference. It was hard to stay around the cause of his beloved’s death and not lash out. He dropped his quiver bag onto the wooden table along with his satchel. He brought out his grimoire and flipped through the pages. Once he found the necessary spell, he studied it intently as he prepared his arrows for tomorrow. There was much that needed to be done, and Kylo’s determination for vengeance will see it done.


End file.
